//------------------------------//
// Princess Luna's Story 
// Story: Sonic Adventure: Equestrian Style 
// by Someguy458 
//------------------------------//

The Canterlot Gardens were rather nice during the day, Luna had to admit. Not as nice as they were at night, mind you, but she still had to hand it to her sister for making such a beautiful day.

The Princess of the Night was currently taking a break from it all, spending some off time walking amongst the topiaries and statues. It was relaxing as well as informative, as many of the statues depicted events she'd missed during her millennium-long exile to the Moon. Did you know that the Dragons and Griffons waged a war with each other 273 years ago, lasting ten days before it was stopped by Celestia's intervention? Well, now Luna did.

Luna sighed. She'd missed out on so much, all because she'd let her own jealousy get the better of her. Could she ever fully recover from that?

As she thought this over, she stopped paying attention to where she was walking. In fact, she was so distracted that she tripped over something rather large and white, falling face-first onto it.

When she got up to investigate, however, she was not prepared for what greeted her visage.

It was one of the strangest creatures she'd ever seen. White quills covered the majority of its bipedal body, with just its chest being covered in white fur. Five 'tufts' of quills came out of the front of its face, forming a leaf-like shape just above its conjoined eyes. It wore gloves on its forelimbs and shoes on its hind legs, with golden bracelets capping each of them.

If Luna didn't know any better, she would've said it looked like it belonged in one of those 'video games' she most certainly didn't play when she had some alone time.

The princess backed off quickly, lighting her horn in preparation for anything the creature might try. But after a moment of nothing, she decided to get a closer look.

It was unconscious. Definitely still alive, but unconscious.

Luna unlit her horn, then turned to face the garden entrance. "Guards, come quickly! I have found something!"

As she waited for the guards to arrive, she noticed something else. Just a few feet away from the creature's right hand was a glowing white gem. Curious, she picked it up with her magic.

Immediately, she could feel the power that the gem radiated. It was more power than she'd ever felt a single relic give off, and the familiarity of the energy frightened her.

Chaos energy.

She quickly pocketed the gem, intending to bring it to Celestia herself. She'd most certainly want to see this.





"What do you mean, 'you're busy'!?" Luna nearly bellowed.

Celestia put on her practiced smile, though it was clear that she was exhausted. "I'm sorry, Lu-Lu, but these budget cuts can't wait, no matter how much I want to put them off."

"But what of the creature I found in the garden? And the gem that I found on it?!" To emphasize her point, she brought out the gem.

Celestia took one look at the gem, and reeled at the energy coming off of it. "You're right, that does seem dangerous..." She thought for a moment before she came up with a plan. "I'll tell you what: put the creature in my study, and I'll go meet it when I have the chance. Meanwhile, you keep that gem, and patrol the city to see if anything else comes after it."

Luna raised an eyebrow. "Why not just leave it with the Guard?"

Celestia frowned. "You're the only one I trust to not abuse that gem."

The Princess of the Night shook her head, "I meant the creature, Tia."

Her solar sister smirked. "I want to have a little talk with it."

Luna blinked. "I don't know what talking will do, but if you insist..."





So Luna went on to patrol around the city, keeping an eye out for any possible threats. Anypony that saw her waved to her, which brought a smile to her face. Just under a year ago, she'd been regarded with fear; seen as the second coming of Nightmare Moon. Now, it warmed her heart to know that the citizens of Equestria were warming up to her again.

She was patrolling the old warehouse district when she came across something peculiar. Only this time, it wasn't unconscious.

Another of those strange bipedal creatures was leaning against the side of one of the buildings. This one was black with red and white highlights, normal white gloves, and red-and-yellow shoes with machinery on the bottom. Since this one was actually standing, she realized that they were both about as tall as the average pony. It was also holding a cyan and a green gem, similar to the one in Luna's possession, in each of its hands.

Luna kept a calm exterior, but still brought up her guard. "What an odd place to be. Tell me: do you normally stand creepily in alleyways?"

The creature fired back without missing a beat: "That depends: does your kind normally walk around with such a powerful relic on you?"

She could tell he was referring to the jewel; what else would he be talking about? "Only when protecting it from threats to Equestria."

He nodded. "Your help is appreciated, but no longer needed; I'll be taking that back now."

Princess Luna tensed slightly. "I'm afraid not; this jewel is too much of an unknown, as are you."

"Oh, I'm afraid you misunderstood." He finally moved from his position against the wall and into a battle-ready stance. "That wasn't a request."

Suddenly, his shoes sparked to life, and he began hovering slightly above the ground. Luna lit up her horn, and they both stood stock still for a moment.

"Chaos CONTROL!"

One second, the creature was in front of her; then, before she could even blink; he was right behind her, taking her off guard with a roundhouse kick. She sailed away from the impact, but managed to land on her hooves.

Alicorn or no, a kick to the side from a metal-lined shoe still hurt.

Still, she sent off a blast of magic his way, just barely missing him as he dodged. He practically skated over the ground as they began to circle around each other in a search for an opening.



The black creature soon found one, as he began to shoot towards her. She brought up a shield spell, but he swerved long before coming close to it. It appeared he was testing what she could do.

Well, two could play at that game.

With her telekinesis, she seized one of his shoes and tried to pry it apart. However, he was quick to react, holding out the gems and shouting another phrase.

"Chaos SPEAR!"

A lance of energy shot out towards Luna. She was barely able to pull up a shield in time, but it caused her to drop her hold on his shoe. He rushed forward, but Luna took to the sky to dodge him.

The creature, however, was not to be outdone. His air-shoes began to increase propulsion, and before long, he was in the air as well.

As the two squared off, Luna couldn't help but notice that his left shoe (the one she'd grabbed) was sputtering slightly.

She'd done some damage, and that gave her an idea.

"Impressive," she taunted, "for an oversized rat."

The creature smirked. "Oh, I'm no rat," he stated. "I'm a hedgehog."

Then he did something she didn't expect; he curled up into a ball, leaving his spikes exposed, and launched himself straight at her. She tried to dodge, but he homed in on her, and caught her across the chest. Luckily, her neckpiece took the brunt of the attack (as it was designed to do), but it still winded her, nearly knocking her out of the air, and it almost shattered her accessory.

She finally stabilized as he uncurled and resumed his hover right next to one of the warehouses. Her horn lit up again, and he braced himself for another attack.

But instead of shooting it at him, she instead blasted the wall of the building, causing a chunk of it to fall towards him. He tried to dodge, but his damaged shoe got clipped by some rubble, and it sputtered out, grounding him.

He glanced at his broken footwear, then at her, panting slightly from overexertion. "Not bad. But I will not lose! Chaos SPEAR!"

Another lance of light shot out towards her, but she was able to deflect it with a shield. She readied another spell, and shot it, but the 'hedgehog' dodged again.

It was at this moment that a Royal Guard decided to appear from the other side of a building. "What's with all the ruckus—?!"

Luna gasped; the shot of magic she'd just fired was headed straight for him, and she wouldn't have enough time to—

"Chaos Control!"

In a flash of light, the strange 'hedgehog' appeared right in front of the Guard, pushing him away and taking the blast instead of him. He flew back, slamming into the ground several meters away, and lay still.

Luna froze up, taken aback by the action. He was just fighting her — why'd he save that guard?! Then she landed, quickly rushing to the creature's side. She could see his chest moving shallowly — he was still breathing, but he was hurt rather badly.

Luna realized she might've gotten carried away.

She lit her horn and rested it against his chest, channeling most of her remaining energy into a healing spell. After a moment, the creature started, taking in deep breaths.

For a moment, they both just lay there, catching their breaths. The guard watched in confusion, unsure of what was even happening.

Then the black 'hedgehog' spoke. "You... You healed me? Why?"

"I could ask you the same about saving that guard," she replied.

"I promised someone long ago that I would protect the innocent."

She smiled. "A noble promise indeed. They must be very close to you."

"More than you can imagine," he chuckled weakly, his eyes filled with something akin to wistfulness.

Luna thought for a moment. Then, with her magic, she brought the jewel back out and laid it in the creature's hand.

He looked down in surprise, then back up at her.

"I believe we may have gotten off on the wrong hoof. I am Princess Luna, and it is mine and my sister's duty to protect our subjects."

He hesitated, before nodding. "Shadow the Hedgehog. I was made to be a weapon against the people of Earth, but became one of their protectors."

She blinked, then smiled. He was a reformed villain, too? "It is nice to meet you. Now, let's get you some help. Guard?"

The guard, who had been silently watching the whole time, flinched at the sudden acknowledgement. "Yes, ma'am?"

"I need you to head to the Royal Infirmary and send a dispatch of healers here."

He saluted, still a little unsure, then spread his wings and flew off towards the Castle.

Luna nodded to herself, then turned to Shadow again. "Now, I'm quite curious: what was that about being made to destroy your planet?"

Shadow groaned. "I don't like to talk about it."

Luna nodded. "Would it help if I told of when I nearly destroyed the world?"

Shadow blinked. When he didn't respond, she continued:

"When I was younger, I felt that I wasn't as appreciated as I should've been. You see, my sister rules the land during the day, while I watch over the night. Every time I'd see our subjects sleep through my night while relishing in my sister's day, I'd grow more and more jealous."

"People need to sleep at some point," Shadow pointed out.

Luna chuckled. "Try getting that through my younger self's thick skull.

"Regardless, I eventually had enough of it. One day, I refused to make way for my sister, demanding that I be given the respect I deserved. She tried to reason with me, but I was too far gone; I'd become my alter ego, Nightmare Moon."

"How did you come to your senses?" Shadow asked.

Luna blew a stray lock of her hair out of her face. "I didn't. It took a while, but eventually, my sister's student and her friends managed to slap some reason into me."

Shadow looked away, likely absorbing the story he'd just heard.

"Alright, I'll tell you. But this does not leave here, you hear me?"

Luna smiled. "Of course not."

Shadow took in a deep breath. "I was created 53 years ago aboard a satellite called the 'Space Colony ARK' by a scientist known as Gerald Robotnik. I was the second of two attempts at creating the 'Ultimate Lifeform', in his attempts to find a cure for his granddaughter's illness.

"That granddaughter, Maria Robotnik, and I became best friends. We lived on that satellite together for about a year, always wondering what life on the surface was like.

"Then, the government learned of what Gerald was doing, and didn't approve of it. One night, they raided  the Space Colony Ark and tried to destroy any evidence of what he was doing. And in the process, Maria was..."

Luna gasped. "I'm so sorry to hear that, Shadow."

Shadow simply nodded. "Outraged, Gerald managed to tamper with my memories so that all I'd want was revenge against the planet for killing her. I was locked away for 50 years, until his grand nephew, Dr. Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik, freed me in his attempt to take over the world.

"He managed to blow up half of the moon as a threat to the Earth. And I was complicit in it."

Luna gasped. "What happened?"

Shadow sighed. "It was just a few minutes before the Doctor's plan was to come to fruition, when a recording of Gerald was played from the Space Colony ARK. It showed his descent into madness from his granddaughter's death, and how he now wanted to completely destroy the world. Dr. Eggman came to his senses temporarily, and teamed up with the group that was trying to stop him in order to save the world.

"I, however, stood by and watched. It wasn't until one of them came and pleaded for my help that I finally remembered what Maria really wanted me to do: give the people of Earth a second chance to live happily, and protect the innocent. I finally came to my senses, and joined in the fight to save the world. We did it, but I nearly sacrificed myself to do so, falling to Earth from orbit. If it weren't for Eggman's robots saving me for his next attempt at world domination, I would've been...."

The two sat there for a while. Luna saw him crying slightly, but she didn't dare point it out, nor did she judge.

Even after the world was nearly destroyed, Dr. Robotnik still plotted for world domination?! Why, if she ever got her hooves on him, she'd—!

It was then that the medics arrived. Luna quickly used her magic to dry off Shadow's tears before the ponies could see them. Shadow looked at her confusedly, then smiled when she winked at him.

The moment was soon interrupted, however, when two familiar faces arrived along with the medics. One of them was a white creature with yellow accessories that could move large things with their mind; the other was a hedgehog.

"Sister!" Luna exclaimed in surprise.

"Silver!" Shadow also exclaimed in surprise. He tried to sit up, but grunted from the pain in his chest. Luna held him down gently so he wouldn't exert himself.

"Well," Celestia remarked, "it seems like we've missed quite a bit."