𝔻𝕠𝕟'𝕥 𝕓𝕖 𝕒𝕗𝕣𝕒𝕚𝕕 𝕠𝕗 𝕞𝕖!

      The unfortunate Shadow hid in a cave and, clasping his tail with his hands, lowering his muzzle on the middle of the tail, as if on his knees, cried for a long time. He was a little offended by what Tails said to him. Suddenly, he heard Tails scream, despite the sounds of his tears: — Sha-a-ado-o-ow... When Shadow heard his voice, he was surprised that his Tails still returned to him in this world and was looking for him. — Tails! — all that he could say, he stopped crying, wiped his tears and went out himself, deciding to look for him. He began to crawl and call him: — TA-A-AILS, I’M HERE!!! But this time Tails didn’t respond, as if he fell silent and stopped looking for him, or got desperate again and didn’t try to call him anymore, also hiding somewhere and probably crying just like him. Shadow, imagining this in his head, was already a little afraid for him.

At the same time

      At that time, children were walking through the forest and also heard the screams of that Tails, although they did not understand who was screaming. — Sha-a-ado-o-ow... — What was it? — Tails asked. — Who was screaming? — Tiny asked. — Maybe it was one of the other nagas who shouted and called for Shadow himself? — Nelly suggested. — It's better not to think about it! — Benny advised. — You're right, Benny. — Sammy agreed with him. — Let's move on! They walk for a long time and come to a clearing, where they usually pick berries. Tiny and Nelly, as usual, climbed up, picked a berry and threw it down, and Benny and Sammy grabbed them. Even Tails picked some and threw them. — Tails! — suddenly the children heard someone’s voice, as if someone was calling their brother. After waiting for about a minute, they decided that they must have heard it wrong and continued picking berries. At that moment, the striped naga himself crawled out from behind two trees. He noticed the fox himself, flying on his tails near a bush with berries. True, from afar he could not see him and understand that this was another Tails, a young one. So he mistakenly decided that it was his Tails and crawled towards him, shouting: — WHERE ARE YOU!!! I'M SO GLAD THAT YOU CHANGED YOUR MIND AND LOOKED FOR ME!!! The young fox paid attention to the cry and saw that Shadow himself was crawling towards him. The striped naga immediately scared him. The little fox's eyes widened and he accidentally dropped a berry on Nelly's head. The berry fell on her head and stained her with juice. — Tails, be careful! — THIS IS SHADOW!!! ALL RUN!!! — the little fox shouted and flew away. The four brothers and sisters immediately gasped and all ran away, in all directions, forgetting their baskets of berries. — Stop! Wait! Where are you run? — the striped naga addressed them and did not understand why they were afraid of him and ran away. Each kid ran their own path to confuse Shadow and hid in their hiding spots. Although this is unlikely to save them, given that any naga can smell them perfectly. — Children! Where are you? Why are you hiding from me? What have I done to you? — he asked them, but they did not respond and did not want to shoot themselves. Of course, Shadow knew by the smell where they were hiding, but he did not follow them and scare them in vain. Then the striped one decided to crawl to the tree, behind which that two-tailed fox was hiding, which he mistakenly took for his Tails. — Tails! Don't hide, I still know you're here. At first the little fox wanted to answer that he was not here, but he thought better of it in time. After all, this way he will only burn himself. — Don't give yourself away, oops! — Sammy accidentally burned himself while trying to warn his brother. — "Oh no! Sammy!" — the fox was afraid for his older brother. — Who pulled your tongue? — Benny grumbled out loud, slapping himself on the forehead. And then he bulged his eyes and covered his mouth, realizing that he gave himself away too. Sammy couldn't think of anything other than to run away from here to hide. Shadow immediately saw him and crawled after him. Sammy, while running away, sometimes looked back and dissuaded him: — Don't touch me, Shadow! Take the baskets! Take our berries! Just don't eat us! At one moment, the striped naga grabs him with his tail and, grabbing him by the waist, stops. — No! Stoped! Let me go! I'm not tasty! — he tried to wriggle out until Shadow covered his mouth with the tip of his tail and he began to moo. — Don’t shout like that! Calm down! — the naga calmly addressed the gray hedgehog and he fell silent, not expecting this from that same naga. After all, he and his brothers and sisters know him very well. If he catches them when he goes hunting, he will immediately eat them. — I just wanted to ask you. Why are you running away from me? He removes his tail from Sammy's mouth. He, of course, did not understand why he asked such a question, but still answered: — You yourself were chasing us and want to eat us, as you always wanted. From these words, Shadow immediately realized that perhaps in this world there is an alternative version of himself that is evil and hunts them. However, he himself would never do this to them. — Don't be afraid of me! I'm not the same Shadow, I'm different. I'm not going to eat you. Sammy and the other children who heard his conversation with Sammy, of course, did not believe him. Surely this Shadow pretended to be like that on purpose and told them to believe him, and then he would eat them right there. — I don’t believe it... Let me go! — Sammy begged and still tried to break free. — Okay-okay. That's it, I'm letting you go. — the striped one answered and immediately released the hedgehog. He hoped that at least he would trust him and not be afraid. Alas, even this did not help. Sammy ran away anyway. — Stop! Where are you going? But Sammy ran on and tried not to listen to him, no matter what he tried to tell him. Having reached the tallest tree, he climbed up it. Shadow himself, crawling behind him, of course, ran to the hedgehog itself and was close, but this time he did not immediately grab him. The hedgehog himself climbed onto a high branch and hung. — YOU WILL NOT GET ME OUT OF HERE!!! — I'm not going to. — he answered him. — I’m telling you, don’t be afraid of me! I'm not going to eat you. You have to believe me! — WHY IS THIS BY THE??? — Sammy shouted back. — HOW WILL YOU PROVE THAT YOU ARE NOT GOING TO EAT US!!! — I’m telling you, I’m not that Shadow. I mean, not yours. I'm another Shadow. I'm just not from this world, but from another. And I was chasing you because I just wanted to ask you. I just, when I saw your little fox, accidentally confused him with my friend. All this, of course, sounded like an explanation, and Sammy, of course, was aware of the theory about the multiverse and parallel worlds, but on the other hand, it all also sounded like the ravings of a madman. Surely that Shadow is deceiving him and lying so that he believes him naively and comes down to eat him. After thinking about it, he decided not to go down. — I DO NOT BELIEVE!!! — he shouted back and pressed himself behind the branch as if he was afraid of heights and falling. Shadow first wanted to climb this tree, fortunately, despite his appearance and size, he knew how to climb not such trees. He grabbed the trunk with his hands and climbed up, using his tail to do this. This only scared Sammy even more. He had already closed his eyes and began to pray. Striped immediately realized that he was in vain, because it only frightened him more. Then he goes down and jumps off. Sammy opens his eyes and looks down. He could have immediately grabbed it while he was climbing, but he did not do this and went back down. Maybe he was telling him the truth or is this another one of his deceptions? Immediately, the little fox itself flew up before the eyes of that striped hedgehog. Although he was small, he dared to stand up for his brother. — DON'T TOUCH HIM, MONSTER!!! — he shouted to him and threw a pile of dirt from the puddle that he was holding in his hands in his face. While Shadow rubbed his eyes to remove dirt from his face, Tails himself flew away and shouted: — SAMMY, RUN!!! The elder brother immediately came down from this tree and ran to hide. Striped wiped his face and looked around. — Wait! I won't harm you. — he said and, sniffing, crawled along the scent of the same hedgehog. Sammy himself hid behind a stone and caught his breath. The striped one crawled up and lifted the stone. Sammy, who was leaning against him, fell to the ground. — A! Where are you! It seemed there was nowhere to run. He closed his eyes in despair and prepared for Shadow to eat him. At that moment, the goddess Amy arrived from the forest. She saw Shadow himself, looming over the small Mobian. — O! Hello Shadow. I see you caught one of these kids? — she asked him and sniffed. — I smell four more nearby. Let's share! You can eat this one and give me the other half. Okay? Shadow himself looked at Sammy and understood that she wanted to eat him herself. He couldn't allow this to happen. — Sorry, baby! — he apologized to him, took it in his hands and opened his mouth. Sammy this time, since he was ready to be eaten, did not even resist. I just cried a little. Shadow threw it into his mouth and swallowed it. Of course, he directed it only to the safe stomach along the second path, and not to the one that digested food. The other brothers and sisters decided that he had probably swallowed it and was digesting it. — NO-O-O!!! — the other children shouted, sticking out their hands and accidentally giving themselves away. — Yeah! Here you are! — she hissed and crawled after them. The kids immediately ran away and began to hide. Amy was able to grab the fox by his tails and licked her lips while looking at him. — You won’t run anywhere — HE-E-ELP!!! — he shouted, and Shadow could not stand it and, fearing for that little fox, intervened in Nagini’s snack. He ran and hit the snake on the cheek. She bent down and let go of the fox. — What are you doing, Shadow? — she was indignant. — Don't touch the unfortunate children, monster! — the striped one hissed at her. Amy didn't understand why he was protecting these children if he wanted to eat them like that one. She was already beginning to think that he was probably overheated in the sun. — Get out of here and leave the kids alone before I skin you! — he intimidated her in addition, although in reality he had no intention of ripping anyone off anything. She did not argue with him and crawled away, because her life was more valuable, and Shadow was not to be trifled with. At that time, the little fox himself, although he was afraid, went down to the ground and began throwing stones at the striped naga and shouting: — SPIT OUT OUR BROTHER, YOU MONSTER!!! — Okay-okay. Quiet! All! I'm letting him go. — he answered him calmly and spat the gray hedgehog out. The latter was trembling a little with fear with bulging eyes, and judging by the moisture under his eyes, he was still crying while inside him. Shadow put him on the ground and asked him: — How are you? You okay? Aren't you too scared? — I... I... You... You... Saved... Me? — all he could ask him, not believing that Shadow, who swallowed him, still let him go back on his own, of his own free will. — Certainly. I told you I didn't mean to eat you. I'm not that Shadow, but a different one. — In what sense is it not the one, but the other? — Tails didn’t understand. — It seems... He said that he came from another world. — after thinking for a moment, Sammy explained to him. Tails scratched the back of his head and asked: — From another world, you say? — he asked and the striped naga silently nodded. This explained a lot why he was acting so strange. More precisely, not like their Shadow from their world. — Are you saying that you are not our Shadow? — he nodded in response, and then spoke: — Forgive me for scaring you so much! I didn’t know that you have your own Shadow here, whom you are so afraid of. I would never, ever attack any of you. — he explained to them. Judging by the fact that Sammy is alive and well, since that Shadow first swallowed him temporarily and then immediately spat him out, the children still believed him. Although that Benny was still a little distrustful of that Shadow and looked at him suspiciously. — What are you doing here? — Tiny asked. — I lost my friend... My Tails... I mistakenly confused your Tails with mine when I saw him. My Tails has long been an adult. — he explained to her. — How did this happen? — asked Nelly. — Well. — at first he wanted to explain to them in more detail, but since they were still children, he decided to remain silent about the more detailed and longer story. He decided to explain only briefly and embellished: — We have our own nag in our world. Scorpio the serpent. Name is Luz. He hates humans and Mobians to death, has stolen a magic ring to travel between other worlds and travels to other worlds to corrupt them and leave them with only nagas as their only inhabitants. We crossed so many worlds, trying to catch him and stop him, but every time he ran away from us to the next world. When we found ourselves in this world, my friend was tired of this whole chase, that anyone in his place would have long ago gone crazy from all these jumps between worlds, that he decided to give up and return home to our world. Then we quarreled and split up. I stayed here in despair, and he seemed to have returned to his world. But when I was sitting in my cave and heard that he seemed to be calling me, I realized that he, too, had stayed and was looking for me, and decided to go look for him myself. His explanation seemed to sound convincing, although the children themselves stood as if they did not understand anything. In their minds, they understood everything perfectly. — “Poor Shadow! Not ours, but this one! How sad it is to lose your friends over such a trifle.” — thought Sammy. — "Blah blah blah! Yes, this snake thinks we are idiots! He’ll probably eat us now while he’s trying to charm our teeth.” — thought Benny. — “What a wretch! I would probably also go crazy if we also traveled to other worlds for probably an eternity.” — thought Nelly. — This naga seems to value his friend very much. I wish I could look at that other Tails and compare myself to him! — thought Tails. — “How I feel sorry for you!” — thought Tiny. — You did not understand me? No? — asked the striped one. — A! No no. We actually understood everything. We were just thinking about it. — Tiny explained. — Where is he? — Shadow sighed heavily and almost began to cry again. — Don't worry! We will help you find it. — said the little fox. — It’s true that there are a lot of nagas in this forest who want to feast on us, and not just that hedgehog. — Tiny added. — If any of them show up, then... Would you mind hiding us from them in your safe stomach, just like you protected Sammy? — No problem! I myself control my larynx and decide where to direct everything I swallow. — Shadow answered. — Fine. Then let's go. — Sammy said. Shadow and the children set off, even forgetting about their baskets of berries, which they had not yet fully picked.

Meanwhile

      And that adult Tails at this time, not yet completely desperate, was still walking with his head down through the forest and was still looking for his Shadow. — Shadow, where are you? At least give me a sign! Completely despairing, he throws his sword to the ground, sits down on the sand, wraps his arms around his legs, bows his head on his knees and cries. His cry was immediately heard by a naga crawling past, looking like a blue hedgehog. It was Sonic himself. He saw Tails and at first thought that it was his Tails among the children. However, after sniffing, he discovered that he had a completely different smell, which was different from the smell of that Tails. He is mature and different. Could this be another Mobian with two tails, but similar to that Tails? Assuming this, he crawled up to him and asked: — Hey, baby! Why are you crying? Who hurt you? Tails stopped crying when he heard someone address him. He wiped away his tears and looked at the person addressing him. Seeing the naga and firmly convinced that he was not dangerous, he answered him: — I lost my friend. — And where he? — Sonic asked. — Somewhere here in the forest... Hiding... He's probably offended by me and doesn't want to see me. — the fox explained honestly, deciding to remain silent about the detailed details. Sonic approached him and sniffed even more. He smelled another scent that surrounded him. It smelled like nakedness. Apparently he is his friend. — Is your friend a naga? Did I understand correctly? — he asked him and the fox nodded. — Do not Cry! I'll help you find him. Just tell me what he looks like! — So big, all black with red stripes with white fur on his chest, but his eyes are kind. — Tails explained, wiping his tears with his tails. Sonic, of course, understood that he was talking about Shadow. True, he has known Shadow himself for a long time. He doesn't trust Mobians or humans at all. So why would he be friends with him. — Is this Shadow? — Yes, he is the one! How do you know him? — Tails asked. — I knew Shadow himself. He doesn't trust anyone and is rude to everyone. Even to our children. — What? — the fox did not understand a little and, indignant, stood up. — My Shadow is not like that! He is kind and he loves me. — he added, almost shouting at him. — I.. I.. Sorry, it’s all my nerves! If only you knew how much I suffered... — he picks up his sword in his right hand and holds out his left. — Sorry again for not introducing myself yet. Miles Prower. Or just Tails. This is where Sonic clearly suspected that something was wrong. He knows his Tails and that impostor who looks like him is clearly not him. — I don't believe. Prove that you are the real Tails. — he asked, and as proof, the adult fox flew into the air on his tails, asking: — Can’t the real Tails do that? — Maybe... But I still don’t believe it... I know my Tails and you are clearly not him. Tails immediately realized that apparently he couldn’t get away with this, since he was familiar with his local version of Tails. He sighed heavily, sat down and said: — You see, sir. I'm Tails, but not yours! Sonic was a little confused by this concept and asked: — In what sense is it not ours? — It is long to explain. But please, you have to believe me! The question concerns life and death. My Shadow and I arrived from another world to yours to save your world from our evil naga scorpion named Luz Bucket, who wants to exterminate all people and Mobians in your world. On the one hand, this all sounded to Sonic like the ravings of a madman. But his serpentine intuition told him that, on the contrary, he should believe him. — Okay, I believe it. — he said and extended his palm, allowing him to sit on it. Sonic took that Tails to Sally's house and introduced him to her. Sally was also shocked when she saw that Tails and learned that he, along with his Shadow, arrived from another world. The fox himself told Sonic and Sally the whole truth about himself, the whole story about his youth in his world until he became a naga hunter, tried to reconcile all three races, and then, together with Shadow, began to hunt for Luz. He ended the story with how he ended up in this world and quarreled with Shadow, because he was in love with him, and he could not be with him, since they are representatives of different races and also men. He, of course, understood and allowed him to go home through the portal, but he himself remained in their world. After that, he regretted what he had done and tried to return to him and find him to ask for forgiveness. But he never found it. He was probably offended by him and is hiding, no longer wanting to see him for what he said to him. After the story, he cried again, but Sonic and Sally calmed him down. They promised that they would help him find his friend. And they set off. Everyone split up and went in different directions to quickly find that Shadow. Not their Shadow, of course, but Tails.

A little bit later

      And that Shadow, together with the children, went out into a large field at that time, which grew only daisies and grass, and the trees were just a wall around the meadow. He looked around and the place seemed beautiful to him. — You know, your world is much more beautiful than mine. — said the striped snake hedgehog. — Yes. We know. We ourselves were shocked by this place when we first found ourselves in it. — Tiny answered. — Mr. Shadow, excuse us, of course, for a possibly stupid question, but... Why are you so... Kind and calm? And most importantly, how? — Nelly asked and Shadow looked at her questioningly. — It’s just that our Shadow is more angry and rude. Because he doesn't trust anyone. Even us. And he is also afraid that we... Allegedly, when we grow up, we will attack them all and kill them... Because his life was clearly terrible. I suppose your life, on the contrary, was better? The striped naga thought for a moment and replied: — Well, you could say that. I just had my own life in my own world. Of course I had one human friend. True, she later died protecting me from other people. Anyone in my place would be angry at people for this, just like Luz was when people killed his father. However, I understood perfectly well that people are not to blame for this. They are afraid of me and think that I am dangerous for them. That's why they tried to kill me... And Maria... She sacrificed herself, exposing herself to blows and letting me escape... Taking all this into account, I believed that maybe in the future everything would get better, the world would become a better place and people would stop being afraid of us or try to kill us... True, I was also afraid that they would track down my house and kill me while I was sleeping. But I believed in my inner, albeit childish, convictions and did not let the thirst for revenge get the better of me. If this still happened to me, I would rather become the same as Luz. Angry, cruel and hating people. Even that Tails, mine, would not have protected or been friends with him, but rather would have simply eaten him, without even regretting it. And perhaps I would be completely convinced that he was right and would support him in everything. However, I am not like Luz. Even my parents would not want me to become so vengeful and evil. They wanted me to grow up as a kind and honest naked person, observing all the laws of nature and knowing not only measures, but also honor. The children listened to him and became even more imbued with that other Shadow. They hugged him in the stomach area, and he smiled at them and also lightly hugged him with his palms. — O! How cute! I'm about to cry! — They immediately heard a voice exactly similar to Shadow’s. The children and that striped naga looked at the source of the voice and noticed that Shadow from this world. He spoke with sarcasm, of course. He looked menacingly at the other Shadow and the children as well. — It is he! — Sammy said. Standing next to that Shadow was Luz Bucket. He also looked menacingly at that Shadow. — Will you ever leave me alone and stop chasing me? — asked the scorpion. — Never. — answered the good Shadow, and the evil one asked him: — Why are you so worried about your fox, and especially about those children? Don't you realize the danger they pose? — Don't lie to yourself, monster. You don't know them well. They will not become bad in the future and will not attack you. — assured the kind one. — Are you really that naive, Shadow? — asked the angry one. — I'm not naive. You are the one who is evil and soulless if you are trying to get rid of the unfortunate and innocent children who are not to blame for anything. What did they do to you that was so bad that you were so angry with them? — Exactly! — Benny confirmed. — You’re definitely naive, Shadow. — he shook his head in response. — Humans and Mobians cannot be trusted. I hate them all, and as a child I was afraid of them because they killed my parents and took me prisoner. They kept me in a cage like a lab rat and experimented on me. The only exception among them was whom I knew well, the one person and the only one who truly loved me for who I was. She was almost like a sister to me, and then those bastards killed her. — I understand you, Shadow! These bastards also killed my father. — Luz supported the evil striped hedgehog. Good Shadow immediately understood that he was apparently talking about Maria. He probably also knew her in this universe, and then she also died. — I’m so sorry you lost Maria Robotnik, Shadow. Is it true! — he told him. — So you lost her too? — asked the evil Shadow and crawled closer to his good self, continuing to ask: — Then why are you so concerned about these delicious sausages in dough? — They are not food for you, do you understand that? They are, first of all, living and intelligent children, intelligent representatives of intelligent races. If we nagas hunt them and kill them, we will become worse than them. You can't eat a sentient being like a cannibal. And I know what it's like when you lose your loved ones. But I was not taken prisoner. I was always free and tried to just avoid people with Mobians. Unlike Luz Bucket, I did not get angry at people and Mobians, but simply accepted the fact that people and Mobians may never accept us nagas as individuals. The main thing is to value your own life and live the way nature allowed you to. And the children, especially still children. — Do you really think you can convince yourself? — asked the scorpion. — He only trusts me, and you are nothing to him. — You better not interfere in other people’s conversations, Luz. You already tried to ruin all the worlds that Tails and I saved from you. — explained the kind Shadow. — Really? It’s okay that your little fox is probably already an adult, unlike them. And besides, he’s a naga hunter, as Luz explained to me. — the evil Shadow listed to him everything that Luz had said to him. — Why would you get along with someone who is a hunter of people like you and me? What if he turns against you? — You don’t know anything about my Tails, unlike me! — the kind Shadow hissed in response. — He will never do that. He used to be one, but for now he still holds this title. In fact, he would never kill nagas without the right reason. Besides, he's not just a little fox. He... — for a minute he thought about how to explain who he is to him. Of course, he could have said that he was his lover and loved him, but there were children nearby and he did not want to say that in front of them. So he decided to say differently. — He is my best friend. Even faithful. He always comes to my aid, just as I come to him. He and I trust each other and never betray each other. He is like a son to me, like a younger brother. And I will destroy anyone who dares to threaten him. Even both of you. — Is that so? — asked the angry Shadow and stood in a fighting stance, preparing to attack the striped naga in a bandana. Luz decided to step aside a little and for now watch how those two Shadows would fight against each other. For now, the same one took the children into his hands and stuffed them into his mouth, hiding them in his safe stomach so that they would not get hurt or at least not get caught by Luz. They were not against it and were ready for this. They were no longer even afraid, for they had been in the stomachs of nagas more than once. For example, Sonic. At this time, good Shadow also takes a fighting stance and prepares to defend himself from his evil self. — Chaos control! Evil Shadow first disappeared from sight with a flash, as if he had never been there. Good Shadow looked around and listened. Feeling that something is sneaking up behind him and attacking him, he manages to duck down and the evil Shadow flies over him, trying to catch him. Shadow from below sharply raises his tail and, like a whip, hits him from above, pushing him forward. The angry striped naga was knocked to the ground, but still stood up. — What are you doing, idiot? I thought that you were cooler and stronger than him! — Luz was indignant. — If you are so smart, then go and try to fight him yourself. — he answered him, getting up and teleporting again. — Chaos control! The good one dodges again, realizing in time that the evil one is on his right side. He tried to grab him, but missed. The good fellow responded by hitting him in the jaw from below with his right fist. — Chaos control! — the good Shadow decided to try to do this, but he, strangely, could not do this. He decided to try again. — Chaos control! — You're trying in vain! Only I own this, and as far as I understand, you don’t, because you weren’t locked in the laboratory. — The evil one grinned and again ran first to attack. — Then I’ll hit it the old fashioned way. — he answered and, spinning, waved his tail, hitting the evil one in the face with it and thereby pushing him to the side. The good striped naga quickly crawled towards his evil self and grabbed him by the back of the neck as he stood up. The evil one figured out to grab him by the shoulders with his clawed hands and throw him over himself, throwing him to the ground. He clenched both hands into fists and just began to hit the other himself on the chest, when the latter managed to roll somersault to the side like a log. The evil one raised his tail and sharply hits the ground with it, like a hammer, trying to crush the good guy while he crawled back. — Is this all you can do? — the kind one grinned. — No. — the angry one answered him. — Chaos explosion! — he said, and a blast wave came out of him, which, although it didn’t hurt, pushed the good one back a little like the wind. From the wave of the explosion, the villain jumped with claws outstretched and mouth agape. Good Shadow raised the middle of his tail in time, like his knees, and, using them to grab the evil Shadow by the stomach, threw him over himself. He flew further, flying past the target and crashed with his back into a tree, upside down. — Ugh! Amateur! You have to do everything yourself. — Luz thought out loud and rushed to attack. He tried to hit his snake-hedgehog, but it dodged. The good guy began to circle around Luz and at one point, when the evil Shadow crawled up to him, Luz mistakenly decided that it was his good guy and hit him in the stomach. — Luz, you idiot! It is me! — he swore. — Sorry! You are the same in face and appearance. There is no way for me to tell you apart. — Luz explained, when suddenly the good-natured man grabbed him by his tail with a sharp tip. He pulled him by the tail, knocking him to the ground and began to circle around. — Stop doing that! Let me go! I'm dizzy! Evil Shadow tried to help him and attack his good self, but accidentally got hit when good Shadow lifted Luz, spinning him around and holding him by the tail. The evil one was thrown back, and the good Shadow threw Bucket and he flew, hitting a tree. The evil Shadow stood up and swung his tail, trying to hit the good one. The latter also figured out to grab him by the tail and hoped to spin him around so that he could throw him later. However, the evil Shadow foresaw this and when the good one grabbed him by the tail, he sharply pulled him towards himself, throwing the good striped naga over himself, first to one side of the ground, then to the other, again in one and so on. And he hit the good guy on the ground about fifteen times, after which he spun him around and threw him against another tree. With groans, the good one gets up, scratching the back of his head and, coming to his senses in time, noticed how Luz Bucket himself attacked him, grabbing him by the throat, throwing him to the ground and starting to choke him. — I... I'm suffocating! Luz was grinning, and Shadow’s evil double, standing nearby, looked sternly at his good self, folding his arms over his chest. Suddenly, adult Tails himself flew in with a sword in his hands and he appeared shouting Tarzan: — UA-A-A-A-AUAUAUA-A-A-A-A-A-AUAUAUA-A-A-A-A-A-A!!! He flew up to Luz's tail and plunged his sword into the tip of his tail. He screamed in pain, letting go of the good Shadow. He quickly took a breath and with one blow knocked Luz to the ground. Then he stood on top and grabbed Luz by the neck, starting to choke him. — Let me go! You'll strangle me! — the scorpion begged. — Give up, Luz. You can't beat us! Surrender and I will spare you! — Never! Luz croaked in response. At this time, adult Tails was dealing with an evil striped naga. — Two against one is not fair, monster! — he snapped at him. — Wait, wait, buddy! I am your friend. It's me. — the evil Shadow tried to deceive that fox. — He's the evil one. I simply outwitted Luz into attacking his ally. — Don't take me for an idiot! — the fox hissed, for he understood who was his Shadow and who was not. The angry striped hedgehog rushed to the attack and tried to catch the fox. He jumped, ran over the hands of the evil naga, ran up to him and kicked him in the right eye. He stepped back a little, grabbed his eye and rubbed it. Tails flew around the head of the evil naga and irritated him like a fly. He tried to slam him, but accidentally hit his chest with his palm and hit himself. The striped naga came to his senses and looked around, and at that time Tails was hiding behind the back of the head of the evil naga Shadow. — Where are you, little freak? The fox mockingly touched the back of his head and quickly flew away when the evil Shadow turned to him to notice him. However, he did not see him. He then turned forward, and Tails stood in front of him and swung his sword, leaving him with a scar under his right eye. He grabbed his eye and almost cried from pain. — Shadow, I don’t want to kill you at all, but you’re forcing me. I won't harm you if you leave us alone and don't attack my friend. I will kill anyone who dares to offend my friend. Even you. But I will not touch other nagas, if they do not attack us. The angry striped naga did not listen to him and tried to attack again. — Chaos control! Evil Shadow began to teleport here and there. In this way he hoped to outwit the fox and attack him unnoticed. He grabs it unnoticed and puts it in his mouth. However, Tails was not taken aback and plunged the tip of his sword inside Shadow's larynx. He felt a pain in his throat and began to cough, spitting out Tails. The fox wiped some blood from his sword on his hand and looked menacingly at the evil striped naga. He looked at him menacingly and lured him with his palm. However, the evil Shadow was still afraid of him and decided to retreat and crawled away. Good Shadow at this time finished strangling Luz. He stopped resisting due to lack of air and lost consciousness. Afterwards, Shadow let him go. Tails flew up to him and hugged him. — Are you okay, Shadow? — Yes. It's okay, Tails. I'm glad that you finally changed your mind and came back for me! — I’m so glad to see you. Forgive me for everything I said to you... — No, Tails, forgive me. It's my own fault. I didn’t have to be so intrusive and impose my own on you... — at this moment he fell silent, remembering that he still had children inside him in his stomach who still heard them. — I understand. But that doesn't matter to me. Our friendship is still more important and we should not quarrel over such trifles. We are always together and always help each other. Wherever I go, you go, just as wherever you go, I will go too. Friends forever! — he extended his hand. — Forever! — Shadow answers and extends his index finger with a claw, which Tails uses instead of a hand to shake. At that moment, Sonic and Sally also entered the clearing. — O! There you are! — Sonic was happy when he saw Tails and Shadow. He was at least sure that this was the same Shadow that Tails had told them about. — Sonic? Sally? It is you? — the voices of children were heard from Shadow's stomach. Of course Sonic and Sally heard them. They then mistakenly decided that it was their Shadow, who finally got to them and ate them. The blue naga was filled with anger and bristled with anger, deciding that the children were probably already being digested in his stomach, since Shadow swallowed them. Even Sally got angry and hissed through her teeth: — OH YOU, CREATURE!!! YOU GO AGAIN!!! Shadow didn’t understand them, but Sonic attacked with a scream and knocked him to the ground, hissing at him: — I WILL TORCH YOU INTO PIECES FOR OUR CHILDREN!!! — STOP-STOP!!! HE DIDN'T EAT YOUR CHILDREN!!! HE JUST PROTECTED THEM BY HIDDING THEM IN A SAFE STOMACH!!! — adult Tails explained to them. — IT'S TRUE, SONIC, DON'T TOUCH HIM!!! NOW HE WILL LET US OUT!!! — the screams of the children were also heard. They were no longer afraid of the darkness in the very stomach where they were, but more for Shadow himself. Sonic and Sally calmed down and crawled away. At that time, Shadow himself stood up from the ground on his tail and spat the children back into his arms. They, in turn, smiling and stretching out their arms, jumped into a hug with Sonic and Sally, into their arms. — Children, thank Chaos, you are alive! — Everything is fine! Here was our evil Shadow with this scorpion, but this Shadow saved us so that they would not eat us. — Well, you have to! — adult Tails was surprised. — I didn’t think you were capable of doing such a thing! — Thank you. — the striped naga took this as a compliment. — Well. Let's go home! — Sally said and everyone followed her. Sonic and Shadow lifted Luz, grabbed him by the arms and dragged him along, as if he were being escorted home when he was drunk. They didn't even notice that the evil Shadow, who had temporarily retreated, was quietly watching them from hiding.