-::-

Space, the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its five year mission – to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations. To boldly go where no one has gone before.

-::-

Glass exploded against the wall of a bar, the shards tinkling down in a glittering shower of dangerous confetti.  A blue hedgehog just barely had enough time to duck his head behind a scuffed bar to avoid being pelted in the skull with another accurately thrown shot glass.  He poked his head from the table to peer at his rather angry looking customer that seemed quite fond of destroying public property.  His uncle was going to have a fit once he saw this mess, but it wasn’t his fault!  Who knew he wasn’t supposed to cut off a drunk Mallasion when they were on a binge?

It was a lesson well learned.

“Hey buddy, have I seen your face before? You’ve got the charming charisma of a TV star, were you on LOST?” The bartender tried for small talk.

The hedgehog ducked again to avoid getting a bar stool hurled at him.  He crawled behind the bar to avoid further attack, taking note that he really needed to clean the floor sometime soon.  He peered around the corner to see the slime alien lumbering towards the bar.  The hedgehog tucked into a ball and rolled out of the way.  Just in time too, as the alien oozed over the ledge, landing in the spot where Sonic had been crouching.  The gelatinous slob.

The alien began to raid the supply of liquor, upending bottles and throwing the stuff he wasn’t interested in over his shoulder. Emerald eyes narrowed with annoyance as he realized his uncouth friend was taking the good stuff.

Oh, it was so on.

The bar had been cleared out as soon as the ugly lug began to throw a tantrum, so he didn’t have to worry about anyone getting hurt in the cross fire.  The bar tender had stayed behind to try and reason with the intolerable alien.  Or to go down with the ship in a proverbial sense, because if the alien didn’t kill him – his uncle would.  Either way, the hedgehog was a dead man walking anyway.  He jumped to his feet and took stock of his surroundings.  Attacking a monster comprised seemingly out of slime was not a great idea.  Not only would his limbs get stuck inside its body and if caught for too long, the alien’s skin could secret a type of burning poison that would give him one hell of a rash.  But he had a plan.

A rather bad one, but he was confident it would work.

“Hey ugly!” He shouted, darted to the side of the room with such speed it was almost hard to believe the mobian was capable of the feat.  It was even more surprising that the alien actually looked when the bartender shouted at him.  He would have a chuckle out of this later since clearly the alien wasn’t the brightest crayon in the box.  Now he just needed to make it angry.

Well...

Angrier.

Lucky for him, the hedgehog had the particular skill of enraging anything that breathed.  Especially while they were drunk off their tails.  That talent of his would come into handy. Unfortunately he was a bit strapped for source material on slime ball aliens.

“Did you get your looks from your MOM?” Sonic shouted, “Because that’s a face not even a mother could love!”

It was hardly a serious or malicious insult, as far as snarky remarked went, it was one of his worst, rating amongst the ones he had said when he was a cub in grade school. It said volumes about how drunk the alien was when the third grader jib actually worked.

The alien lunged for him and the bartender skidded back, his impressive speed coming to his aid.  He hadn’t expected that to work.

It was ten minutes later, but the hedgehog felt like it had gone by in a blink of an eye.  At the same time it had felt like an eternity.  The fight had been jarring and painful as Mobians were not as physically adept at fighting species that were better equipped at it.  The bar tender’s speed was the only thing he had to his advantage and it had taken all of his impressive cunning and improvisation to lock the Mallasion in the freezer.  The fight could have been over a lot faster had he been in an open area, but the bar wasn’t built for a race course.

Exhausted and quills askew, the hedgehog walked out into the common area of the bar, thinking he could very much use a drink himself right now.

Only to stop dead at the dozens of phasers pointing at him.  A speaker blared from the outside.

“Fugitive 0157246, you are wanted by the law for the first degree murders of officers Monroe, Vera, Embank, and Tifa.  Any move you make will result in immediate vaporization!”

The hedgehog remained absolutely still, doing a great impersonation of a statue if not for the fact that his ears were twitching with mad confusion on the top of his head and his eyes were taking in his surroundings once more.  It was an impressive feat for him to stand so still all things considered, but when he was so tired and had that many weapons pointed at him, he wasn’t going to start kicking up a fuss.

At least now he knew where he had seen that joker’s ugly mug before, “ A wanted fugitive huh?” He said, looking far calmer than he was, “And here I thought he just looked like the soap scum on the bottom of the sink, an easy mistake to make.”

The officers did not look impressed by his joke.

“Uh, I locked him in the freezer,” The bartender continued a moment later, feeling awkward under the officer’s stony gazes.  And their weapons. This comment seemed to interest them and the hedgehog found himself being ushered out of his own bar.

Soon he found himself sitting at a hovercraft outside, tricorders to measure his health being waved in his face until a medic whipped out a bruise kit and began tending to him.  Not that the hedgehog took it quietly.

“I’m fine, really!” He whined, his head straining from one side to the other, trying his best to see what was going on and not making the medic’s job any easier, “What’s going on? How did you guys track him down anyway?”

The medic scowled at the hedgehog but didn’t reply.  Before he could pout and pester the man for a answer though, a deep voice from behind him spoke up.

“One of your clients at the bar alerted the authorities with his description, and yours – Sonic the Hedgehog.” The bartender whirled around and the medic drew away, hands thrown up in a gesture very clearly saying ‘I give up!’

Green eyes watched the newcomer with careful consideration.  He was a mammoth, huge and tall.  He was wearing a GUN coat which bore the Starfleet insignia and had his arms folded behind him, looking serious yet casual at the same time.

“How do you know my name—...” Sonic asked, pushing up off the craft and eyeing the man.  He eyed the insignia carefully and managed to ascertain his rank, “...—Captain?”

This earned him an amused look.

“My name is Captain Mogul, and I know who you are, because you’re the only blue hedgehog around in these parts aside from your Uncle Charles,” The captain answered, “You’re your father’s son.”

Sonic already didn’t like the way this was going and his expression closed off, a cocky grin flickering over his face as he dug sneakered heels into the ground, “Yeah, so? That’s generally the way those things work.”

Mogul gave him a patiently amused look.  His arms folded over his chest and he nodded, “It was impressive for you to take on the fugitive by yourself.  A bit harebrained and reckless, but impressive none the less.”

Sonic eyed the captain warily, as if unsure how to react to such a compliment, “Well harebrained and reckless is how I operate sir, gotta keep them on their toes somehow.”

The captain seemed to agree with him as he was nodding, “Enlist in Starfleet.”

At Sonic’s baffled look, he continued.

“Your father had a similar ideology,” Mogul muttered, “He died on the USS Tornado, saving the lives of over eight hundred people, including the lives of your mom – and you.”

Sonic’s ears laid back as the familiar guilt that comment hit him squarely in the gut.  He couldn’t help but resent it whenever someone mentioned his old man.  Days alternated between him being proud of Jules, and hating it whenever someone so much as breathed his name.  He wasn’t sure how he was feeling about it now, but he knew that his ma had never quite gotten over her mate’s death. 

Sonic disliked it whenever she looked at him and her eyes fogged over.  It was like she was seeing Jules instead of Sonic. Seeing ghosts that were no longer there.

“He was captain of the ship for twelve minutes,” Mogul said softly, “He went down in the books as one of the best around. I dare you to do better.”

“The ship leaves at 0800 hours,” Mogul nodded at Sonic one last time and turned around, walking back the way he came and leaving the blue hedgehog to his thoughts.

Green eyes flickered up to the starry night sky contemplating what the captain had said.

Enlist in Starfleet, huh?

A small smirk ghosted over his fawn muzzle.

He rubbed his bruised cheek and stretched out, the muscles in his legs tensing. Green eyes burned as the first stirrings of adventure began to creep up in Sonic’s mind. 

He’d do better than his old man, he decided then and there.

He’d captain the best ship around with the best crew Starfleet had ever seen.

And he’d last for more than twelve minutes.

Mobians, Shadow decided, were fascinating.

Seeing that he was half-Mobian himself, it was no wonder that he held underlying interest for the species. In many ways Mobians were outmatched by other alien races. They were outstripped in contests of speed, agility, strength, or even intelligence. However time and time again, Mobians, and the humans they lived with seemed to show signs of cleverness and unpredictability which made them hard to observe and judge.

They were also irrationally emotional, never able to think beyond a moment's notice or plan. In human terms, Shadow believed it was called 'thinking with your heart.'  Considering the heart did not possess a higher thought process, Shadow found this to an illogical concept.  It was far more efficient to ignore ones heart and think solely with ones brain.

He was a halfling by nature. A Black Arm by his father's side and a Mobian by his mother's.  As he favored his father's physiology, Shadow lived upon a large world called "ARK" with the rest of his race, studying and working on higher forms of thinking. By the age of twelve, he would have been able to graduate college three times over. Control, logic, and intellect were the ways of Shadow's people.  They followed the teaching of Chaos, finding serenity in the madness of that energy which poured through all of them like a volcanic spring.  Finding peace in chaos helped them organized their thoughts and subdue their nature.  They found that deviance from the path of Chaos would undoubtedly lead their race down a road of destruction.

The Black Arms were once a warlike race until they had nearly driven themselves into extinction by their arcane ways of thinking.  They realized their emotions were too powerful to be expressed in a healthy way, so Black Arms chose to master them instead. Their emotions were controlled and the race was able to rebuild.  In the absence of anger, there was no need to resort to violence.  The teachings said as such.

Not all seemed to agree with this.

Shadow's father learned the teachings of Chaos in a different light than the rest of his race.  He embraced the destructive side of Chaos, forgetting that there must be balance otherwise its power was possible of consuming worlds. It was a cycle, Life, Living, Death; Creation, Balance, and Destruction. Doom only fell for the intoxicating call of destruction, death.  He became warlike once again and attempted to bring Shadow's mother, Maria with him and a few hundred Arms who shared his emotional philosophy.

She had refused, choosing instead to stay on the ARK with the Black Arm family. Doom was not pleased and was exiled from the world along with all of those who had followed his beliefs.  Doom left, but not without vowing that he would one day return for his son to show him the true path of Chaos.

Shadow did not remember such events or even the face of his father.  Even if he had recalled, it would make very little difference to him now.  He was a child of two words, a mother that was Mobian, living on a planet of Black Arms, and a Father who was no longer around.  This left Shadow susceptible to verbal attacks from his peers, all of whom seemed personally invested in provoking an emotional response from him.

He supposed breaking the nose of his tormentor was a Mobian, emotional response.  His mother and grandfather had not been happy with him.

Shadow did not regret his action and doubted he ever would.  They had made the mistake of calling his mother a whore.  His lips pressed into a line, even as the memory of it struck him.  Perhaps he had more of his father in him than he had originally realized as his attack on the bully had no ounce of logic.

It was about this time he realized no matter how much he attempted to please the Black Arm ways, he would never be accepted amongst them.  Shadow chose to honor their ways, suppress all emotion and become one of them as much as possible.  It was clear though... He would never belong.

So when it was time for him to choose a place for his higher education, Shadow denied a chance to study at the Black Arm school of Science.  Instead, he passed the opportunity by for the chance study at Starfleet. He told himself it was logical to deny when the elders had called his mother a disability -- after all he would not be a part of any school that still believed in arcane thoughts.  All that would do was hinder his education.

Starfleet by far, was the most logical choice.

He would study amongst human and Mobian peers.  Rise quickly amongst the ranks and explore the wide reaches of space. A scientist's holy grail of sorts -- it was clear this was a wise choice.

Shadow still found himself studying Mobians like they were intriguing specimens he had found under a microscope.  As he suspected though, the Mobians were more resistant to him, his formal way of speech and computer-like mind -- perhaps even more than the Black Arms were.  At least he knew the Mobians expressed their dislike and distrust of him in a more open fashion, expressions showing clear on their face.

A child of two worlds would never belong on either worlds, but Shadow hoped -- an illogical, Mobian emotion he knew -- that perhaps he might find some place he belonged among the stars. After all, one world out of the unknown galaxies in the world could very well accept him. 

The probability of finding such a place was roughly .000000000000001 percent, well outside of realistic goals he could obtain. Shadow went to search anyway, knowing full well it was far not within the realm of reality.

Perhaps it was the Mobian half of him that wanted to look for a ‘home’ – often times Mobians had the irrational desire to find a place they could “belong.”  They had a habit of being more stubborn than was possible. That was what made them so unpredictable and...

...Fascinating.

There were some moments that just struck a person in such a powerful way it was obvious they would forever change the way one viewed their life.

"I might just throw up on you."

This was one of those moments.

The prophecy came to fruition in a matter of seconds. Sonic looked down, his face paling and lip curling at the sight of his beat up tennis shoes covered in bile. Super gross. There was very little he could say in the face of his shoes being violated on such a thorough level, and instead chose to gape at the bleary eyed echidna staring back at him.

"Sorry 'bout that," The echidna grunted, looking very ill, "Space travel makes me sick."

Sonic tried to look sympathetic to the man's plight, but he found it pretty hard when he could feel the man's lunch oozing into his socks. It looked like... grapes? (What a weird taste in diet.) Still, he forced himself to not jump out of his seat like it was on fire and slowly peeled his ruined shoes off his feet.

"Kind of funny that you're going to be working in space then," Sonic managed. A passing commander saw the situation and managed to gather a black trash bag. Sonic's poor shoes were shoved into the bag with prompt viciousness, leaving the the hedgehog to wonder if everyone hated his shoes today. Such thoughts were confirmed when he watched the bag containing his shoes being shoved into the trash compactor.

During this traumatizing event, the echidna grunted in acknowledgment before making his way to the restroom. When he reemerged, Sonic noted the echidna looked better. It seemed like he had brushed his teeth to destroy the traces of the lunch he was forced to taste twice. Some of the color had returned to tan cheeks.

"You going to be okay man? Do you need a doctor?" Sonic asked the echidna.  This earned him a look that was crossed somewhere between bemused, annoyed, or even slightly entertained by Sonic's questions.

The echidna shook his head as he sat down in his chair, "I don't need a doctor, I am a doctor."

Sonic was not comforted by this.

"Sorry about your shoes, I'll replace them for you," The echidna apologized, but didn't seem very embarrassed about the situation, which was a relief considering it was awkward enough, "The name is Knuckles."

"Sonic," a handshake, "I can't imagine how much of a doctor you'll be in space if you can't keep your lunch down on the trip up."

Knuckles looked faintly amused at Sonic's first hand observation and buckled himself into his seat. He used a bit more force than was necessary to tighten the straps.

"Yeah, well I gotta see the sights somehow and I'm not going anywhere if I stay planetside," Knuckles muttered, "Besides, space is the only place where I can take my cargo and not be followed."

Sonic looked somewhat interested in the passenger's mysterious cargo, but Knuckles waved him off saying it wasn't important. Sonic thought Knucklescouldn't be more contrary if he tried, especially since Knuckles was going out of his way to take it into space of all places.

"Well Knux," Sonic drawled as he leaned back in the shuttlecraft, "It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

There were some moments a person just knew were going to make a huge impact on their lives.  At this moment Sonic knew he and Knuckles would end up being very good friends if not for the simple fact that the echidna could vomit on Sonic's shoes and bounce back from that without so much as batting an eye.

Out of all the passengers strapped in their seats, he and Knuckles were the only ones that hadn't bothered to dress in their Cadet Reds.  The rest of the Cadets were all snot nosed brats, and Sonic had a feeling that all or most had the best training in whatever field they were studying.  They didn't seem very accepting of a country hick like Sonic.

"Nancy floofs don't know the first thing about diseases and space travel," Knuckles grumbled and gave a cadet an annoyed look who was staring at him like he had grown a second head, "What're you lookin' at?"

The echidna leaned back in his seat and from his knapsack pulled out a flask-like container. At Sonic's questioning look, Knuckles arched an eyeridge, "See for yourself. Ancient echidna recipe for calming the nerves and stomach." Knuckles' lips twisted into a wry grin and he offered the flask to the hedgehog, "

Sonic took a sip and promptly spluttered, coughing hard as the burn crept up his ears and down his throat, making his eyes prick with moisture.

"This is alcohol!"

A dry chuckle, "I think some Klingon's would beg to disagree."

Sonic was still trying to regain the ability to speak throughout all that and gasped for breath, "You mean they drink battery acid on other planets?"

"Don't be such an infant."

"Give me that," Sonic grumbled as he snatched the flask from the echidna. He took another sniff and under Knuckles' expectant eye, took another bold sip of the drink, this time preparing himself for the burn.

The echidna snorted as Sonic went back for seconds, amused the hedgehog would even bother especially considering the effects the first drink had on him. He took the flask and raised it to the air, "Cheers."

It was around that time when the burn began to make its way down Sonic's esophagus, did Sonic know that yes -- he and Knuckles would be great friends.

-::-

Being friends with Knuckles was a lot like having a personal guard dog. The echidna was exceptionally protective and always had a habit of making his presence known. He was an immensely experienced doctor but very close lipped about anything concerning his family. Sonic never pressed him, but Knuckles said that it was his job to be a Guardian on Angel Island where he was from. When Sonic asked him what Angel Island was since he had never heard or seen it before, a shadow had crossed over Knuckles' face. A simple reply of, 'I know, and you never will" was all the information Sonic got about the other's home.

Knuckles made good on his word over replacing Sonic's footwear, and in exchange the hedgehog got to drive his friend up the wall by showing off his impressive speed. Knuckles claimed it was unnatural for a hedgehog to have an ability like that. In all his years of medicine, he had never seen anything like it. To which Sonic quickly replied that it was just as unnatural for an echidna to be able to punch holes in titanium.

Knuckles didn't want to admit he had a point, but claimed his strength came from being in constant contact with a giant shiny rock. It made no sense to Sonic, but he accepted the explanation readily enough.

"I was born in the stars," Sonic quipped cheekily, "Gravity doesn't affect me."

"That's not a real reason," Knuckles said, voice as dry as the Sahara.

Sonic had only waved Knuckles' questions off and changed the subject. Knuckles hadn't thought to pursue the topic any longer, distracted instead by talk of class. Namely a teacher Knuckles couldn't stand.

"This guy hasn't been knocked off his high horse for as long as he's been at the academy," Knuckles growled in frustration, "He and his No-Win simulation. It's a wonder no one has decked him yet -- especially since no one has beaten that stupid test!"

Sonic, who had only been paying halfway attention, perked up at the idea of the challenge, "Wait, what test is this?"

Knuckles gave Sonic a long-suffering glare and muttered something under his breath about snot-nosed brats, "The Kobiyashi Maru. Y'know, the test that all cadets under the Command division are required to take?" He jabbed Sonic with the blunt end of a hypospray he was fiddling with, "That's your division, remember? It's optional for everyone else though."

Already Sonic wasn't paying a lick of attention, instead contemplating a plan in his head, "The Kobiyashi Maru huh...?" His lips twitched up at the corners, "Who programmed it?"

The echidna was wide to make a wide birth of space between himself and Sonic. He had long since learned whenever Sonic got that particular gleam in his eye, it was hard to dissuade him of anything, "Commander Shadow -- Sonic you don't really hope to beat that test do you?"

A blinding white smile was Knuckles answer.

"It's part of the Command requirement, now isn't it?" Sonic chuckled, "I've got to take it anyway, so I might as well be the first to beat it."

"But no one beats it Sonic," Knuckles said, aghast.

Sonic was already up on his feet and grinning, looking for information on his newest target. It was clear he hadn't heard a word from Knuckles, "Lets see what you got Commander Shadow."

The instant Shadow clapped eyes on the blue hedgehog, he knew the Mobian was going to be trouble.  Whether it was the way those mischievous, emerald eyes gleamed or the cadet's blatant disregard for rules, all of him screamed that he was no good. Shadow could read the emotions skittering over the face of the cadet, good and bad.  At first it had intrigued him, but now it only served to work contrary to Shadow's overall health -- because Black Arms did not get frustrated.

Sonic the Hedgehog, son of the infamous Jules.  He had been Captain of GUN's flagship, 'Tornado' twenty five years ago.  It had been destroyed on the edge of Black Arm space by mysterious causes.  The only warning sign Starfleet received before losing contact with the Tornado, was the strange warp tunnel which had appeared in the middle of space during a violent ion storm.

Jules died captaining the ship and it was what Mobians would consider a heroic death since it resulted in the lives of those aboard being able to shuttle out safely. Shadow could not understand what was so inspirational about a man's sacrifice, but Mobians often found comfort in the misfortune of others. It was a fact which would never cease to perplex Shadow.

Sonic was trouble, just like his father.  Jules was known for his unorthodox approach and Sonic had no doubt followed suit in improper ways.  Sonic was loud, following only his own rules.

As it stood, he had chosen to pick apart the rules of the test Shadow had programmed. The Kobiyashi Maru, an unbeatable exam meant to show its test takers the true meaning of fear and accept death under all circumstances. If Shadow were to partake in typical Mobian emotions, he would say that it was inspired by Jules' last stand on the Tornado.

In actuality Shadow found it more logical to take the real life situation of the Tornado and apply it in a simulation, or one similar to it as no one really knew what happened that day aboard the flagship.  As a result, Shadow had been intrigued when Sonic chose to take the test his father had failed. He had chosen to watch watch during Sonic's first examination.

Shadow could remember seeing the tightening of emerald eyes at the corners, a clear sign of Sonic's tension.  It was a normal response that all Cadets experienced when taking the exam for the first time. Shadow filed the observation away in the back of his head and continued to watch. The hedgehog had taken the Captain's chair, sat down and began the test.

It ran as Shadow had expected. Sonic failed spectacularly.

Shadow watched from the observation decks up above, ruby eyes traveling over the frenzied crew. Sonic kept a level head throughout the ordeal, but not even that was enough to save his crew.  It was clear the hedgehog knew they were doomed from the very start by the way he sat in his captain's chair, gaze dark.

Perhaps it was erroneous of Shadow to theorize before he had gathered all facts, but he believed the lesson had been learned.  One could not cheat death and when faced with an insurmountable situation, it was best to accept death and come to terms with it.

Sonic had been the last cadet to leave the room while Shadow stayed behind to continue his observations on the hedgehog, almost like he was an interesting specimen that had found its way under the Black Arm's microscope.  Sonic was still seated in the captain's chair, gloved fingers rapping rhythmically against the arm rest, lost in thought.

It was normal for most students to have a reaction like this, Shadow reasoned, After all, they were forced to come to terms with the fact that they and their entire crew were now dead because they could not think of a solution. It was difficult to accept.

When Sonic stood up, an hour after the simulation was over with, Shadow came to the conclusion that the hedgehog learned his lesson well and had taken the sufficient time to organize his cumbersome emotions.  Shadow left the observation deck, the simulation shoved to the back of his mind.

Imagine his intrigue when he heard Sonic would be taking the exam a second time.

Shadow took his spot on the observation deck again, wondering if Sonic was experiencing an emotional, rebellious response. After all, most of the hedgehog's peers would have considered it lunacy on Sonic's part to attempt the test a second time. The theory was dismissed when Shadow felt the raw energy pouring off the youth.  For a moment it left Shadow stunned at the pure chaos energy sliding through Shadow's senses, making it difficult for the Black Arm to focus.

It was an electric pulsing that flared out around Sonic like an invisible halo. Determined tendrils of its power beckoned to Shadow, stroking at the corners of the Commander's mind and calling to Shadow's instincts on their most basic level. It was hard to ignore that strange siren, startling Shadow with its sheer intensity. His heart seemed to throw itself against his sides out of surprise, and he fought to quell the unruly... emotion.

When he managed to keep it under his control, Shadow came to an odd conclusion. Sonic was confident he could beat Shadow's simulation.

The headstrong hedgehog actually believed he stood a chance.

Impossible, but intriguing nonetheless.

As expected Sonic had been defeated a second time by the program, and like last time Sonic remained seated in the 'captain's' chair long after everyone had cleared out the room.  This time lasted even longer than the first, and Shadow remained where he was -- observing.

When Sonic chose to leave, Shadow remained for a few seconds longer.  This hedgehog was intriguing to say the least, acting most illogically in defying his defeat the test. There was no submission in those emerald eyes. Sonic had done everything within his power to save the crew, even if it meant doing insane and completely unorthodox actions.  Perhaps the motives were a bit misguided, but it was fascinating in its own right.

As interested as Shadow was, he knew there would not be another chance to observe the cadet's actions.  He was sure that would be the last time he saw or heard from Sonic the Hedgehog. So shouldering his disappointment and scientific curiosity, he pushed Sonic from his mind a second time.

Shadow's disbelief was profound when his conclusion had been torn asunder.  Cadet Sonic, having failed the Kobiyashi Maru twice had come back for a third attempt.  Not only was this unheard of, it was at this point Commander Shadow was worried if perhaps Starfleet had allowed a mentally unstable man to enlist into the fleet.

The test was free for every student to take and required for those in the Command program.  Most students -- at least the brave ones took it once, but only once.

Shadow's lips thinned into a line and ruby eyes hardened as he once more took his usual spot on the observation deck.  At first Shadow had supposed it was an act of male bravado -- boldly preforming courageous feats in the face of certain death.  It was an illogical sense of pride and stubbornness which made this cadet refuse to give up.

Sonic did not understand the lesson, no matter how many times it was crammed down his throat.  Had Shadow given into his Mobian side, he would have found the situation frustrating -- especially considering the cadet's heritage.  Shadow might even have frowned.

Shadow watched with dry attention as the cadet swaggered aboard the simulation, a bounce to his step and broad smile on his face.  Sonic exuded confidence with every step he took, and Shadow might have been annoyed if he didn't know for a fact that Sonic's overinflated ego would soon be popped. The cadet took his seat in the captain's chair and flashed a broad smile at his classmates when they began.

Then, before Shadow's very eyes -- the Kobiyashi Maru was beaten.

The cadet hadn't broken a sweat.

Emerald eyes turned up to the observation deck, smug and very happy with his apparent success.  For a moment their gazes locked and Shadow's ears slowly laid back against his head.

Sonic the Hedgehog was the first and only one to have ever defeated the Kobiyashi Maru.

"How did that kid manage to beat your simulation?" Shadow heard the voice of an overseer ask of him.

Shadow responded automatically, his thoughts processing the question before he had an opportunity to actively think about it.

"I do not know."

Yes, Sonic the Hedgehog was most certainly trouble and now Shadow was faced with the concern of how he had managed to beat the test. Logically it was impossible to do so without outside aid, therefore the clear answer was that Sonic had cheated.

All Shadow needed to figure out was how.

His eyes darkened as he watched the victorious Sonic exit.  It was Shadow's turn to remain standing on the observation deck, alone and lost in thought. The taste of defeat was heavy on his shoulders, but Shadow would correct it.

It was clear now, that Shadow would not be able to wash his hands of Sonic the Hedgehog so easily.

-::-

The cadet was a strange man.  Outrage poured off the hedgehog in palpable waves and Shadow did his best to ignore them.  It was hard to remain focus when the hedgehog had such a strong presence.  Sonic possessed an unusual amount of chaos energy built within his body.  It was far more power than was typical of a normal Mobian -- more than what a Black Arm could posses as well.  Had Shadow been in a different situation, he would like to explore the possibilities behind such an anomaly.

The call of Sonic's energy was distracting enough, and if he were to pay attention, it felt like a jolt to Shadow's system.  The Back Arm was almost afraid to think of what would happen if he were to ever come in contact with the cadet's bare skin.  Just one taste of that dynamic, emotionally charged energy.

"Now I think we all know the answer to this, but the test itself was a cheat. There was no way to win," Sonic's bold voice interrupted Shadow's inner musings.

Now was not the time for his thoughts to wander.  At the moment he was standing trial against Sonic in front of the school board, charging the cadet with academic dishonesty in front of his peers.

"Your response precludes the possibility of a no-win scenario," Shadow responded in turn.

"I don't believe in no win scenarios," Sonic replied with a challenging, but forceful statement.

Shadow should have meditated to calm himself before the trial. His Mobian side was frustrated and annoyed with Sonic over finding the subroutine that had been programmed into his beloved exam which changed the parameters of the Kobiyashi Maru. Had he meditated, he would not be in such a volatile state and would be in more control of his responses.

"Then you have failed to understand the purpose of the lesson," Shadow said coldly, vindicated.

Emerald eyes narrowed at the challenge, "Enlighten me."

The words spilled from Shadow's mouth before he even thought to stop them.

"You of all people should know a captain cannot cheat death."

A hush fell over the auditorium when Shadow ruthlessly brought Sonic's father into the discussion. Sonic seemed to freeze where he was standing, emerald eyes locking onto Shadow. The outrage pouring off of the cadet seemed to be forming a cloud around him, but Shadow did not stop to think about that intriguing energy again.

"I of all people," Sonic repeated, somewhat dully.

"Your father captained the USS Tornado did he not?" Shadow inquired of the student. The glare Sonic shot him very clearly screamed, 'why-are-you-talking-like-I-don't-know-about-my-father?' Shadow ignored the look and continued without pause, "His sacrifice saved the lives of his crew at the cost of his own."

"I just think you don't like the fact that I beat your test," Sonic talked over Shadow loudly.

That was a fair assessment. Shadow did not like the fact that Sonic cheated. He stoutly refused to believe the snot-nosed Cadet had truly beaten the exam. He had been forced to change the parameters of the exam to even stand a chance, and that was not beating it.

The discussion continued, Shadow lecturing Sonic on the merits of understanding fear and coming to grips with it. A trait that was expected of all Captains to carry.  Shadow knew it was pointless to explain this to the stubborn hedgehog. The words merely flew in one ear and out the other, with blazing, emerald eyes glaring at him the entire time.

It was to everyone's surprise when the trial was interrupted. The Admiral in charge of overhearing the discussion was handed a datapad by a terrified looking Ensign and promptly looked it over. The room was silent as they waited for the Admiral to finish.  His mouth was set at a grim line and he looked up at the gathered cadets.

"We've just received a distress call from the ARK," He began, "Since our fleet is currently inhabiting the Delta Quadrant, all cadets are to report to the launching bay for further instructions."

As the words fell from the Admiral's mouth, all thoughts of Sonic and cheating fled from Shadow's mind.

His home was in danger.

Sonic was cold, shivering and sick.  All thanks to his stupid friend, the good doctor Knuckles.  Sure, that striped jerk of a Black Arm had grounded Sonic on Academic Probation. Those bogus charges that nailed Sonic for cheating were flimsy at best, but they still left it so Sonic was the only senior cadet that wasn't going up into space to help the ARK.

He was lucky, or unlucky (because Fate was beginning to prove she was more than a little fickle) he had Knuckles for a friend, because the echidna had taken it upon himself to smuggle Sonic on board the ship he'd be traveling on through questionable 'medical' means. In the back of his head, Sonic knew Knuckles was risking a great deal by bringing Sonic along. His career could be in jeopardy if they were found out.

Sonic's stomach flipped uncomfortably while he was nearly crushed by a wave of nausea. He found that at this moment, he couldn't summon a lot of concern over Knuckles' job.

"I don't feel right," Sonic groaned, "I feel ...leaky, is that normal?"

"For you I'd say it's an improvement," Knuckles said wryly.

"Why am I friends with you again?"

A second later, all words escaped Sonic's grumbling mouth.  His breath caught at the sight of the magnificent ship they would be traveling on. The Silver Lady that Sonic knew someday he would captain -- The Enterprise.

"That's why," Knuckles smirked broadly at the breathless Sonic.

-::-

Sonic felt sick to his stomach and it had nothing to do with how Knuckles chased him around several decks of the Enterprise and injected him with illegal amounts of drugs. Who knew he had a severe allergic reaction to Mudd Flea Vaccinations?  It probably didn't help that the reaction was compounded upon other problems thanks to Knuckles trying to 'fix' the issues his fragile immune system was causing.

Someone should really stop arming Knuckles with those hyposprays.

No.  Right now he felt sick to his stomach because he was trying to save the ship from being destroyed. While half-addled, he heard the announcement over the Comm by a somewhat timid sounding kid.  Sonic recognized him to be a boy genius named Miles.

'The ARK has been reporting unusual seismic activity thanks to the strange appearance of an ion storm.'

The same thing which happened to his father.

It was happening again.

It was safe to say that Sonic had taken off without waiting a beat, slower than usual thanks to his drugged state, but not down.

Knuckles was on his heels and that said something about how out of it Sonic really was, barking something that sounded similar to, 'keep your heart rate down you damn fool!' it went ignored by the speedster.

A white bat was following them in rapid pace -- Rouge, a communications expert that Sonic hoped would be on his side. He knew she would be key in convincing Shadow since she had an unusual way of understanding the complex way the Black Arm's mind worked. That first officer was bound to throw the cadet out of an airlock if he was given the opportunity and Sonic needed all the allies he could get.

If Knuckles didn't tranquilize him first.

The fates were being unnecessarily cruel for landing Sonic on the same ship as Shadow, and as expected the first officer was not happy to see him. They squared off against one another on the bridge as Sonic desperately tried to argue that they were flying into a trap. Eventually he broke through to Shadow's infallible logic when Rouge jumped in to support his theory.  There had been enough of a pause for Shadow to consider her words logically before he too threw his lot in with Sonic and together they braced themselves on the bridge. Captain Mogul gave the order for the shields to go up and for their phaser banks to be readied.

Sonic stood beside Shadow, his hands braced tightly against the railing separating the Conn from the rest of the bridge. His chest was tight and emerald eyes were narrowed with an unusual amount of seriousness that was normal for the typically cheery hedgehog.  His game face was on, and he didn't suspect it would be coming off any time soon.

His breaths came and went in controls waves. He had to have a clear head now, because if he was right, then the Enterprise was about to face his father's killer.

Never had Sonic expected to have the opportunity to meet the man who killed his father and turned his mother into a no-show who would rather spend her time off planet than raise the boy that looked like her mate. His heart hammered in his chest and he drew his attention outward so he would no longer be wrapped up in his inner turmoil.

Shadow was standing close enough Sonic could touch him if he wanted to.  The stiff presence made Sonic feel a bit uncomfortable. It was strangely reassuring in its own, serious way, but the fact that the two hated one another lessened the feeling immensely.

The seconds were ticking down and all the crew could do was wait. Silence filled the bridge like a suffocating blanket, but no one dared to speak until they were ready.

A white hedgehog that went by the name Silver was acting as helmsman. He was staring out at the stars that flashed by them, "Dropping out of warp in 3...2...1..."

The Enterprise stopped on a dime.

And landed into hell.

A graveyard of battered starships floated amongst them. Broken skeletons of their former glory.  They had been vibrant and alive mere minutes ago.  Thanks to an error by Silver, the Enterprise had been about a minute behind the other ships in the fleet. It was likely the Enterprise's late start had stopped them from meeting a similar fate.

Silver wove the Enterprise through the flaming hulls, his youth disappearing in a second as he expertly steered the ship.  Golden eyes were wide as they came across the massive shape of their attacker.

Calling it a large ship would have showed a mastery of understatement. Without hesitation it open fired on their ship and they were forced to take evasive measures.  When it became clear that even with their shields up, it wouldn't take the ship long to swat the Enterprise out of existence.

The crew was thrown around the bridge like rag dolls and hurled from their seats as explosions rocked the foundation of the ship to its warp cores.  Their protection was failing and the crew was forced to hold their breath when suddenly a cease fire was called.

"Captain, we're being hailed," Rouge's tense voice echoed over the silent bridge.

Mogul nodded once to tell her to open up the link.

A hedgehog bearing a striking resemblance to Shadow appeared on the screen, a third eye perched on the center of his forehead. All of them stared out at the crew of the Enterprise. The first officer turned to stone besides Sonic and it was all he could do to look at him in quiet horror.

"Hello son," Their attacker sneered, eyes locked on Shadow.

"Hello son," The hedgehog on the view screen purred, "Look at how grown up you are."

Sonic's head snapped over towards Shadow, gaze accusing, "You know this psycho?"

Shadow's head nodded once, looking almost bored with the proceedings, "It is as he said -- I believe he is my father."

Silver looked up from the helm, confusion etched over his young face, "You 'believe'?"

Shadow nodded once more, his grip on the railing firm enough to show this news had unsettled him, "I would not know if this man's claim is true or not, as my father was exiled from the ARK long before I would have been able to remember his face."

Shadow looked to be carved from stone as his gaze fell on the Black Arm. So this was his father?  His family had taken great pains to strike Doom's image from their records, Shadow had no idea what his father had looked like until this very moment.

Doom resembled Shadow strongly, so much in fact the crew kept sneaking glances between the two aliens. They were almost like mirrored images, aside from one major flaw.  Doom carried an additional eye set in his brow -- typical markings for a normal Black Arm in combination with the odd markings.

Schooling his face into a mask of detached indifference, Shadow moved from the spot he had taken next to Sonic to move closer to the wide screen. His stomach made an odd lurching sensation that Shadow recognized as disgust. Perhaps it had been foolish in the past for Shadow to think of the mysterious figure of his father as anything other than an exile -- but he hoped Doom would be more than this foul beast.

More than a murderer.

Was this the being who had sired him?

It was then Doom decided to throw his two cents into the conversation, "I assure you that I am your father boy," The Black Arm's lip curled with distaste, "And I see that you've been properly brainwashed into that hippie-style worship of Chaos."

Shadow opened his mouth to refute his father's claim but the alien spoke over him, anger flashing across his face in a way that would have any respectable Black Arm raise an eyeridge in disapproval.

"I will show you Chaos as you have never seen it before Shadow," Doom hissed, garnet eyes then locked onto the silent form of Mogul, "Captain, you will board my ship the Comet, and we will discuss... peaceful terms of your surrender." A thin, cruel smile flitted over his face, "And Shadow?" He looked over at the hedgehog whose full attention was focused on him, "Watch."

With those words, the view screen clicked off.

Sonic whirled on Mogul without waiting for instructions, "It's a trap sir. He's going to kill you."

Mogul raised an unimpressed eyeridge at Sonic's declaration but stopped when Shadow agreed with him.

"Your survival is unlikely."

"Tell me something I don't know," Mogul shook his head and gave Shadow a sharp look before the Black Arm could actually attempt to fulfill his request, "Shadow, Sonic, Silver. I'm off to the shuttle bay, and you're coming with me."

As they walked, Mogul began to give them sharp instructions, "Sonic and Silver are going to be doing reconnaissance to find out what type of heavy artillery Doom is planning on using against the planet. This will leave Shadow as Acting Captain and I'm putting Sonic as First Officer."

Sonic did a double take, and would have laughed his ass off at the expression Shadow made if the situation had not been so dire. Instead of demanding a logical explanation for his decision, Shadow surprised Sonic and nodded once at Mogul and took off back towards the bridge.

-::-

Sonic wanted to know how the hell someone could weaponize a black hole.

It was genius. Complete insanity of course -- but genius none the less.

He and Silver had been perched on the side of a low hanging enemy ship while Sonic did the daredevil stunt of Extreme Code breaking -- which consisted of him engaging a few crazy Black Arms in mortal combat while attempting to hack into their databanks.  He thought about having this sport patented under his name after all this madness was done.

He had successfully cracked their firewall and relayed the information up to Rouge for translation when Silver had to pull Sonic's tail out of the fire.  The kid really knew how to take care of himself when push came to shove, even going as far as shoving an enemy right off the side of the craft they were dancing on.

Even when they arrived back on the Enterprise as safely as they could have managed, Sonic would chalk this day firmly in the category of 'suck.' 

It only went downhill from there.

The ARK only had seconds left of existence before it was consumed by a black hole, and Shadow was going down there.  For some reason, the idea of Shadow planetside was terrifying.  More than that -- it was suicide.  Shadow had to save his mother and the elders who resided in an area protected from outside interference.  They could not be beamed out while they were in the holy altar of Chaos and he had to go himself.

Those people were the core of the Black Arm civilization and held many of the secrets and customs that defined what their species were.  The teachings of Tikal and Chaos for example, would forever be lost if Shadow did not act.

Sonic could remember standing rooted to the spot as he waited for the acting captain to return safely. He itched to go along, but knew as First Officer he was bound to the ship should something happen to Shadow  He might have disliked the guy, but they were comrades. Nothing more could be said about allies that were joined by battle, and no matter how much Knuckles tugged at his arm to try and get him to come to sickbay, Sonic stood there until the glowing lights of the transporter sparked to life to signal Shadow's return.

Sonic's heart leaped and a smile curled at the corners of his lips as he saw the shapes forming.

It abruptly slipped off his face once he realized there was something terribly amiss.  One of the shapes caught in the beams evaporated, lost in the transporter and Miles -- who was operating it sagged in his seat in numb horror.  It was in that moment when the ARK was destroyed did Sonic realize Shadow was mobian. Perhaps even more so than he.

Sonic had never seen Shadow so achingly vulnerable. Ruby eyes wide and a hand extended out to grasp the fading lights of the transporter beam -- Shadow looked almost child-like. He was frozen where he stood, even seconds after they had been safely transported onto the Enterprise. Sonic didn't know what happened down there on that planet, but one thing was for certain.

The expression on Shadow's face would haunt him when he went to sleep.

"I lost her," The sad voice of Ensign Tails came from the transporter console, "I'm sorry Captain Shadow..."

"Mother..."

-::-

Shadow escaped onto a turbolift to have a moment to himself. To try to recollect his thoughts and organize all of his emotions. He needed to attempt to shut off the flow. Needed to center himself.

Needless to say, he was surprised and frustrated that his attempts at being left alone were thwarted when Sonic zipped into the turbolift at the last second.

They stood in each other's company in silence for a long moment. Sonic jabbed the button to stop it in mid-lift, emerald eyes dark with remorse and apology.

"I'm sorry," Sonic murmured.

Shadow's breath caught at the heartfelt words. He didn't risk looking at Sonic, otherwise he was certain the hedgehog would see the vulnerable expression on his face. Shadow forcibly schooled his features and pressed the button for the lift to continue.

"Your condolences have been noted although they are unnecessary Mr. Sonic," Shadow intoned, voice flat of emotion. His tenuous control was wavering in the presence of the cadet. He jabbed the button for the lift to stop, even though it was at the wrong floor. Without a backwards glance or word of farewell, he left the lift with Sonic still in it.

Shadow fought to keep his emotions tamed and under control, but in the sanctuary of his own mind they were howling for release. His hands trembled by his sides, but to the outside world he retained his calm and detached persona. He could feel the eyes of Sonic on him no matter where he paced on the bridge.

That distracting chaos energy was reaching for him, coaxing him to give into his emotions. To let it all out and embrace it. Shadow cringed away from the energy, steeling himself against the intoxicating effects of Sonic.

Shadow wanted to curl into a tiny ball and cry his soul out. But he was too angry. Far too angry to grieve.  He wanted vengeance. He wanted to take the life of Doom, the monster who had the gall to call himself Shadow's father.  Doom was to pay.  He was the one to put an end to the only beautiful thing in Shadow's life -- his mother, Maria.

Gone were her smiles.  Her sweet presence. Her everything.

Doom stole it all from him.

Hurt him. Kill him. Make him suffer as you have.

No. Shadow forced himself to think, logic warring over raw emotions. They were outmatched, outgunned, and their ship had already sustained several vicious blows by the enemy ship.  The only logical approach left was to join up with the rest of the fleet in the Delta quadrant to warn them of Doom's warpath.

He gave the order for Ensign Miles to plot a course for the fleet, but no sooner had the words left his mouth, a certain blue annoyance was on him in seconds.  Sonic was angry, in his face with righteous anger that he did not even bother to try to control -- Shadow wasn't sure if he should be jealous or furious.

'Neither,' he told himself, 'You are above emotions. They do not touch you.'

Sonic was shouting at him. All Shadow heard was the buzzing of his anger in his ears, but he had the idea that the cadet was telling him to go after Doom instead of regrouping with the fleet. Doom was going after Terra next: Sonic's Earth. It was clear Doom not only wished to cripple the Federation, but he wanted to annihilate it. He had the power to do so.  Shadow was wholly in agreement with Sonic. He wanted to go after Doom himself and squeeze that monster's head from his shoulders. Shadow barely managed to keep himself in check.

Logic must prevail.

Serenity must flow through him and replace the rage.

He could not grieve.

He had to think, something was not adding up. The ship for example -- Shadow could not begin to imagine where Doom had managed to get his hands on such a powerful vessel.  It wasn't Black Arm issued, because when his father had been exiled they made certain to equip him and his followers with a ship that would do no one harm. The Black Arms -- now an endangered species, had always been peaceful.

This was not that ship.

Or if it was, the ship had been so heavily modified it no longer resembled its original design.

Sonic's voice was rising, saying they needed to stop Doom and save Captain Mogul. Shadow knew this and didn't need Sonic shouting in his face to tell him otherwise. However it was not the logical course of action. They needed to inform Starfleet. Wage an assault against them when their chances were greater for victory. They all saw what happened to the seven federation vessels that engaged Doom before they arrived.

"Captain Mogul ordered us to return to the fleet," Shadow said, frosty in the face of Sonic's anger. The blue hedgehog was not used to being at the whims of another. Especially when their viewpoints were so contrary.

"He also ordered us to come back for him!" Sonic shot back, emerald eyes blazing with fury. Shadow's gaze was locked with Sonic's.

For a tense moment, he felt his control unravelling. He could feel himself locked in those bright, passionate eyes and couldn't escape them. They cajoled him into freeing his emotions from his logic-bound cage. They urged him to give into the rage and do what felt right. Sonic's chaos energy was licking at Shadow's body -- distracting his already perilous control.

Why did Sonic have this effect on him? Why did this infuriating hedgehog always invite him to loosen his hold on his emotions, for even a second? It was too much. His taut and worn emotions couldn't handle this exposure to Sonic right now. He had lost his planet, his home, and his mother in a matter of minutes. What more, he was fighting an internal war between doing what was logical and what he needed to do to avenge his mother's death.

"Shadow you're captain now!"

"I am aware of my responsibilities."

"I won't let you run with your tail between your legs to the rest of the fleet!" Sonic growled. Blue quills bristling as determination lined every muscle on his body. It looked like Sonic was about to reach out and touch Shadow, one of his hands curled up in a fist to appear as though he would hit the Black Arm. The other hand however was stretched out to Shadow in a beseeching kind of call, his fingertips brushed very briefly against Shadow's shoulder.

That was it. The sheer shock of that fleeting touch was enough to engulf all of Shadow's nerve endings in a glorious, hot blaze. The seduction of Sonic's chaos energy was irresistible and it had been felt through the fabric of Shadow's science blue shirt.

Shadow hated Sonic for it.

"Security. Please escort Mr. Sonic off the bridge," Shadow said in cold, detached voice.

But of course, Sonic wasn't going to go easily. He never did. Shadow suspected that nothing could stop the blue hedgehog once he had decided something, and security barely managed to get a hand on the cadet before he slipped from their grips and dispatched them with alarming speed.

Sonic fought, even as Knuckles shouted for his friend to stop and listen to reason for once. Shadow had seen more than enough.  He couldn't stand for this distraction to be anywhere near him.  Shadow's hand enclosed over the back of Sonic's neck, sending a powerful jolt of chaos energy through the struggling hedgehog.

Emerald eyes went wide with shock and his body stiffened, back arching in one fluid motion. Then, without another word, he crumpled to the ground in a limp heap.

"Get him off this ship," Shadow hissed.